


Careful Earth Boy!

by emptyalien



Series: trying to feed karlnap nation [2]
Category: Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Attempt at Humor, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Idiots in Love, M/M, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Protective Sapnap (Video Blogging RPF), Slow Burn, Video Format: Streaming, alien! karl jacobs, karl is obsessed with human cartoons, oblivious mfs, sapnap has a cat named cheddar
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-09
Updated: 2021-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-15 12:49:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,281
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29933685
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emptyalien/pseuds/emptyalien
Summary: Yeah life is going pretty good for sapnap until an alien crashes through his window one night.but he's not complaining.
Relationships: Alexis | Quackity & Karl Jacobs & Sapnap, Karl Jacobs/Sapnap
Series: trying to feed karlnap nation [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2180442
Comments: 4
Kudos: 15





	Careful Earth Boy!

the wind blew through the open window, avoiding blinds and curtains as they had been pulled back to avoid damage. it left an exposed window, on the sixth-floor apartment building. 

sapnap had gotten a little too hot while getting cozied up for bed, now he was casually scrolling through his socials that usually helped to wisk him asleep. 

cheddar lays on his little end of the bed, out cold. the cat had a long day it seemed.

his finger mindlessly moved across the screen with images or the newest meme. some of them were actually funny and once and a while there were a few interesting videos that he could easily get lost in.

tomorrow was saturday, but he had a stream planned so getting a decent night's rest wouldn't hurt him. 

while streaming all sorts of games he's gained a good following as of lately. he's not sure where they came from but maybe one day he can quit his job and just stream- although he really does like his job he won't lie. but his streams are a good side hustle. he prays nobody from his work finds them. he can get a little competitive online from time to time, he will admit.

fresh out of college with a debt paid and apartment to live in, just him and his cat.

in fact, as he scrolled he saw his coworker's latest post about a party. sapnap doesn't really care- he'd rather go out and get drunk with people he knows well enough to. mostly because he's only gone out to drink once.

but that's beside the point, he needs to head to bed soon considering it's about to turn twelve am once he glances at the clock. 

the sound of his phone plugging in with a little ring fills his brand new empty room. he has a lonesome bedside table. his pride and joy is the queen mattress he got as a gift, it is the best thing to happen to his sleep seclude since childhood if he's being honest. 

a few boxes are still seen as shadows in his pitch-black room, his computer is set up though. he had finished doing that today. all he has to do is hope it works for the stream.

the heavy comforter weights down his restless body as he stares off at the ceiling waiting for his eyes to close themselves. today was a long first friday. but sapnap wouldn't trade it for the world.

his brain starts to turn off as his body finally finds comfort in the mattress. the wind starting to whisper in his room now, he's able to really listen to it. 

that's when sapnap felt his cat leap off the bed and slowly strut to the window.

eyes followed the cat in curiosity and sleepy amusement. 

the carpet below the cat disappears as cheddar sat down right in front of the open window. 

it wasn't uncommon for a bird to try and peak through, maybe even fly in. sapnap had heard from the front desk. maybe cheddar just knew one was coming cats are weird like that.

the wind had picked up the more sapnap listened to the bellows and wisps. good thing he put his curtains and blinds aside. 

it had started to become slightly chilly, not that sapnap really cared under his layer of blanket and protectiveness.

he waited for his cat to come back, but he seemed to only stay put for seconds longer. sapnap knew he would come back around onto the bed eventually. 

it seemed he was just staring at the waxing moon, or the what little sapnap could see of it from his comfortable bed. it lets little light in, a bit more than what his phone screen did. it's why you could still see some of the outlines of boxes. and the shadows they cast, or at least the ones closest to the window did. 

his cat had tried to jump and make a nest of several of the boxes, so sapnap had stacked a few of them in the bathroom out of reach of his feline companion. cheddar complained at first with a non-stop string of meows but eventually gave up when he couldn't get his way.

his computer was right in front of his bed, only half of it illuminated and the clean cords he had organized for once looked more like snakes slithering up his wall with the shadows they presented.

the stars were few and between due to the air pollution, but the sky was still a beautiful color. or the same as it had always been. it looked only a little different from the ones he remembers from childhood.

while his brain jumped from topic to topic with a nostalgia sprinkled into his own memories, he didn't notice how cheddars tail began to swing.

in a soft swaying pattern, only the stars noticed. the cat watched the sky with unknown intent. 

sapnap didn't notice anything until his eyes began to see some sort of glowing green in the back of his eyes.

at first, it was neon and then turned emerald. it was barely noticeable in his vision. at first, he thought it was just sleep playing with his sight and vision. 

but when he looked back at cheddar, he was covered in the glowing light. the cat still was entranced by the window and still swayed his tail back and forth. most cats are colorblind though.

covers fell to the floor as sapnap sat up instantly, looking at the completely open window. there was no longer the sky or the glow of the other city streets. 

just _green_

his room was now bathed in the mysterious light. it's all he could see.

maybe he had already fallen asleep, and this was just some strange dream. although he probably would've woken up by now if that was the case.

the light seemed to falter as sapnap stepped out of bed. way more awake than he used to be. 

his feet hit the carpet with a few short soft thumps. he swiped his cat off the ground, the green light even brighter than from when he was in his bed. 

cheddar didn't seem to mind as sapnap hid his cat under the covers, whatever the light was- it surely couldn't be too good considering it reminded him of toxic waste itself. 

covers were pulled over the cat's head as he was stuffed under. sapnap didn't break eye contact with the green light the more it flickered. 

it reminded sapnap of a rave the more the green light flickered through his room. sure he was scared, but whatever it was he was more worried about his sleep schedule at the minute and get rid of whatever the light was. 

maybe it was just some douche bag with a huge green storm light casting it on his building. after all he could still hear the quite loud wind that now started to pour through the window and straight to wailing in his ears. 

in fact, it started whisp his messy hair around, the light had even lessened now. but was still blinking even faster than sapnap could. 

sure sapnap wanted to approach the window but his gut kept telling him no, and it never failed him. he sat up a little straighter keeping cheddar behind him.

he was about to just go back to sleep and ignore it after a few more seconds too, well until there was a flash.

sapnap blinked and there was a sound of tumbling boxes and the stuffing of carpet. the blinds had hit the floor with a clatter that sounded like bones.

his eyes opened again. the light was gone, and the room was back to the normal white-ish glow from the moon. 

it was really weird.

everything seemed the same until you looked at his busted window. 

blinds were laid out like a broken instrument, while his curtains remained intact. the boxes that surround the window were turned over with one of them leaking the content. 

but the most interesting thing, someone had seemingly jumped into his window. 

they looked like their skin was pale green in the light, they also looked human enough. expect for the bug-like antennas that pointed down to the floor. 

the human-thing was hunched like they were praying or just got punched in the gut. 

and the only sound that was heard was still the wind, and sapnap letting out a small yell- either of terror or surprise. he didn't really know.

the human thing was now on the move, once it shot up out of alert of sapnap's yell. hopefully, he doesn't get kicked out for having someone crash through his open window. 

he could get a clear view of its face now, mostly humanoid. with light brown hair and unnatural emerald eyes. they almost glowed. sapnap would say he looked like the offspring of a human and alien.

they were wearing very loose white robes and looked to have a mostly male build. the robes were a little tattered but covered most of it. or from what sapnap could see in the light that was provided. their antenna sprung up with them as well and blew with the wind from the window. 

sapnap wasn't sure what to do next, either throw the thing out the 6th story window or ask if it was okay.

"uhm, you good?" he said, his voice either shaky from fear or from not being in use for a little. he felt cheddar flinch behind him, still safe under the covers. 

the creature only extended its hand, very slowly he might add. and so sapnap leaned back slowly accordingly. 

they blinked, and he blinked back. and they pulled back again. 

the things' nails looked human still in the light, but they were a bit longer and looked more like mini claws than actual nails. his had was still shaped like a human, just green. 

the little light that was still going through the window helped sapnap see what he was dealing with better.

sapnap was still studying it, not sure if this was all real. maybe he's in a coma or something right now. at least he has cheddar and his computer.

the creature opened its mouth. it looked just like a human, but a few of the teeth were sharper than others. its tongue was sort of jagged and bumped. but they started to make a soft noise. sapnap would compare it to some sort of baby mammal. 

it finally made a semblance of english after a few noises that were akin to a baby learning how to speak. 

_"hi"_

it sounded forced, and sort of awkward. it looked like this thing or person had never spoken english. he decided to dumb things down, praying he isn't beat up by the green stranger.

"hello?" sapnap started, and hesitated. not sure where to take the conversation. "i'm sapnap. why are you here?" he gestured to himself, and then to the thing when he asked the question. like he was speaking to a lost child at a theme park. 

"i'm space, exile," it said, still in the forced tone. it's face was still utterly blank when it spoke, but its voice sounded like they were trying as hard as possible to speak english.

sapnap looked at it for a moment and ruled it out for being human. either he's being fucked with by a ghost or some acid magically got in his system. because he was almost 100% sure he was hallucinating.

hallucination or not, he was still going to try and help it- or at least get them out. he could kiss his sweet seven solid hours of sleep goodbye for now. 

he thought over the words it had spoken to, and what the fuck did space exile mean anyway? it was sure a weird-ass name.

"is that your name? _'space exile'_?" sapnap said, putting air quotes.

the creature shook its head in a no. sapnap watched it struggle to speak again. 

"not from here, no name." it paused, and scratched at its hair. "i in space exile," it said pointed back at the empty sky. 

sapnap let his brain sit puzzled for a second, he studied the creature a little more. trying to piece together some sort of story from the few spoke words.

he put his hand on his chin as he often does when thinking, the creature did the same but sapnap couldn't witness it as he stared at his toppled boxes in thought. 

he swears it was like solving a short math equation in his head, because whatever the thing it trying to say, could be completely different in english. but he gives it a go anyway after the cogs in his head stopped turning. 

sapnap looked back up at it, "so you're like kicked out of space?" the creature quickly nodded, and sapnap felt proud of himself, for the first time in a little bit. "and you have no name?" the creature nodded again. 

"k, your name is karl now." sapnap said stretching out.

karl pointed to itself, "me? karl?" sapnap smiled tiredly and nodded. 

karl didn't seem to mind, and since sapnap had established they weren't hostile he decided to get out of bed. 

maybe his brain didn't think it through at the moment or he was too tired- but he really didn't wanna send this guy out who can barely speak english. and he had already tossed the sleep idea a while ago. 

maybe karl was an alien, or just a really really really weird looking person. there were a lot of possibilities, just too many for his brain.

sapnap tossed the covers over his legs again and stood up, noticing the creature was a little bit taller than him in the moonlight. 

he sighed and turned back to his cat, who he guessed was dead asleep wrapped in the covers. lucky him. 

he turned back to the creature who seemed to be observing his room, and now he felt a little offended and judged. 

sapnap cleared his throat in attention, and then a pair of bright emerald eyes were back on him. he shuttered, but only a little. it wasn't windy anymore either.

"you're gonna go to the kitchen while i clean up the crash landing you made." sapnap said, karl only stood there blinking. sapnap resisted the urge to rolled his eyes into the back of his head and pass out. 

two pairs of feet were heard against the carpet as sapnap basically pushed karl out of his room. it wasn't too hard for the past football player.

karl only made a few noises, the only distinct one being, "where kitchen?" and something else he assumed was karl's actual language. 

thankfully cheddar hadn't woken up, as he shut his bedroom door behind as silently as possible. and with a click, he turned on the hallway lights, karl seemed to be distracted by the new area. 

although, is the living room and kitchen were still kind of empty beside the essentials. sapnap kept nudging karl along passing the bathroom and hallway closet. 

another flick of the light switch and the living room and kitchen were lit up, sapnap walked back around the counter. karl was slowly just spinning most likely to see all around his apartment. sapnap almost laughed.

he guided karl to sit at one of the two bar stools in silence before getting their attention and pointing at the kitchen, sapnap cleared his throat again, "this is the kitchen." he said, karl blinking before starting to poke at the granite counter aimlessly.

his feet thumped against the hardwood as he left the kitchen to fix up his room, opening the door with the same silence he did before. 

the room was still the same, but it seemed the moon may have been a little bit higher in the skin now. 

boxes were stacked and set back up, as sapnap organized the one that spilled out on impact. the blinds were still discarded on the side, it looked like they had been collecting dust as it was more obvious while it flew through the small light of the moon. 

sapnap wasn't too sure to do with them other than set them against the crown molding and figure it out in the morning. 

he stood back up, and started to unlock and close the window again. he was not welcoming any more green light or strange aliens for the night. 

of course, once he shut the window as quietly as possible, his curtains crashed right down on his poor head. it was sort of the wake-up call, for him and cheddar because when he turned to check on the bundle of covers- out sprung his orange tabby. 

he growled and put the curtains back with the blinds and moving on to invade his clothing box. his cat only meowed at him. and he responded, "yeah, yeah, sorry for waking you up. again." sapnap said while he dragged out a colorful hoodie and some sweats. the same ones he was wearing, he always bought two if he liked them enough. it was his little rule of thumb.

walking by the bed with the clothes, and cheddar hitched a ride from him out of the room.

the hall light was hard to adjust to, but at least karl was in the same place he left them. 

karl was sat there staring straight forward, once sapnap was able to see what exactly they were looking at it puzzled him a little. 

it looked like karl was reading out his to-do list, and a few other things like letters and such hanging on his fridge via magnets. 

sapnap set cheddar down to roam around, thankfully cheddar didn't mind karl too much. sapnap walked up to karl, looking at their strange antennas again. he tapped their shoulder for attention. 

karl turned to him, blinking. awkwardness crept up sapnap's spine. 

"hey, i brought you clothes. like human ones, the robes looked funky." sapnap said extending out the clothes he had picked out prior. "and i woke up cheaddar so i brought him in here." 

karl took them in their arms and sat up out of the barstool without help. "thank you, sapnap." karl said, their english seemed less forced. it took sapnap back a bit leaving him with more questions about karl. 

karl looked sapnap up and down once more before putting the clothes down and starting to removed the robes, sapnap quickly turned around. maybe if he just kept his mouth shut karl wouldn't understand embarrassment.

he saw cheddar looking in the direction of karl from his couch, sapnap gave his cat a dirty look as he heard karl change. 

he was almost sure karl had finished after a minute or two so he turned back around, and karl was staring at him with the same vibrant eyes. sapnap jumped, but only a little bit. karl had put the robes on the farthest end of the counter.

now it was his turn to look karl up and down, they were matching sweatpant-wise, but it looked like karl put on his hoodie backward. sapnap started to laugh at them, it was like karl was a toddler. 

karl only tilted their head. "is it wrong?" sapnap nodded still smiling. motioning for karl to pull their green arms into the hoodie, they did and sapnap turned it around for them. 

"lookin' fresh." sapnap commented leaving karl and heading around the counter, needing some sort of food or coffee to really wake him up. 

karl only followed, and sapnap didn't mind too much as he flipped through the cabinets, in the mood for mac 'n cheese. although he wasn't sure what karl wanted. or if karl even ate. maybe he should start asking some questions too. 

"karl, do you eat?" he asked while pulling out a box of craft's mac 'n cheese. 

karl nodded, "i consume for energy, so less close eye." their english seemed to improve by the minute. 

sapnap nodded, pulling out a bigger pot for a serving for two. "why can you speak so easily now?" 

karl started to tap the counter on the other end of the kitchen. "humans easy, language easy to read. not speak." karl answered. sapnap couldn't help but feel just a little stupid now, for simply just being a human too. 

red lights from the stovetop glowed letting sapnap know it had started to heat up, he really likes the apartment's newer appliances. he started to fill the pot around half full with water, walking back and forth while karl watched.

he was in his own head, a song playing in the background of his head while he tried to remember the lyrics while the water boiled. 

"what are you doing?" karl asked once the water started to steam. 

sapnap yawned, turning the stove's overhead light on so he could see better. "i'm making food." karl still looked blankly at him. 

"why is red? why does smoke?" karl asked, still wearing a blank face but looking pretty intently at the stove. 

sapnap pointed around to help karl follow. "the stove is on, so it's hot and the red is a warning. the water is hot, so it steams." sapnap explained. 

"our water does not do that when hot." karl said turning back at sapnap for only a second, then right back to the stove. 

the water looked hot enough so sapnap wandered back over to the mac 'n cheese box, ripping it open. he put the cheese packet away for now. he always added extra cheese with butter. 

he turned back around only to see karl about to touch the boiling water, he couldn't do anything in the second karl's finger made contact with the water. 

"karl! dude?!" sapnap said, as karl quickly took their hand away from the water. shaking it repeatedly. but karl's face made no resemblance of pain. they were just staring at their hand and shaking it. 

sapnap quickly put the pasta right by the stove and yanked karl by the other hand to the sink. he flipped the cold water so hard, sapnap thought he would break it. 

water flowed down against the stainless steel and down a drain. the pipes turning the water itself colder while sapnap looked at karl's hand again, taking the dark green area and putting it directly under the now cold water. 

karl didn't move, but sapnap still didn't know if he was alright because their face was as blank as sapnap's mind at the minute. 

karl only stared at him, and then back at his hand. sapnap wasn't sure what else to say, and karl was like the kid who was unaware of how awkward things were. and the majority of the time couldn't read the room.

but the sound of running water reminded him of his own task. sapnap hurried back over to toss the pasta in. haphazardly too, he still had the small rush playing along in his veins. the pasta made some of the water splashes but none ends up on him. 

the stove's red light glowed a little bit less once he turned down the heat. a breath of air passed his lips, and it felt like the first one in the last few minutes. he turned back to karl who is hovering over the sink still, the water still hitting the steel and their hand. 

"thank you, water is weird here." karl says, turning off the water by himself.

sapnap sighed, taking a monster out of the fridge and popping the soda tab. it was the original, his favorite kind. "yeah, let's not do that again, i couldn't even tell if you were hurt." the fizz of the drink made sapnap feel alive once again. 

karl nods in agreement. "your face did a weird thing too." they say, now picking at the hoodie string similar to a cat would yarn.

"what? you mean emotions?" sapnap says, taking another sip. it was the first liquid he'd had in a few hours. 

karl shrugs. "yes, whatever that is. you kept making silly faces." 

the click of the energy drink rings for a second. "it's how humans know how we're feeling. it's written on our faces." sapnap say now picking up the pot of pasta and slowly walking to the sink.

karl moves out the way and watches. "you're strange earth boy," 

sapnap gives a confused smile to himself, "what happened to sapnap?" 

"i didn't feel like calling you that. sounds..eh." karl says, tapping the granite again. 

sapnap pulls back the drained pasta, and moves back to the stove turning it down a bit more. "y'know, for someone who crashed through _my_ window you're being pretty, _'eh'_ " a cocky smile is now displayed on sapnap's face.

"i'm not sure what you mean by that, but i will keep calling you sapnap i guess." 

the rip of the cheese packet fills the second of silence as sapnap adds more cheese and butter while speaking, "sounds like a plan karl." 

the wooden spoon used to mix everything together in the pot is one his teacher gave him one year, it was used as a talking stick and it seemed sapnap had it the most often. although he was shy the majority of the time, it was one of the classes he decided to come out of his shell and the teacher had loved him. 

but they had to move that year so as a parting gift they gave him the silly wooden spoon.

"you're making the facing again," karl says behind him. 

"shut up, it's normal. now i feel like your reading my mind." sapnap said, half-joking. 

karl shakes their head in a no. "i cannot do that my antennae can only sense and send frequency." karl pauses, with sapnap watching him over his shoulder. karl points to sapnap's energy drink. 

"can i have one?" karl asks, genuinely curious. 

sapnap hums and stops his mixing to get karl and energy drink, and took a few steps to show karl how to open in. 

only karl flenches whenever the can is popped open. sapnap tries not to let a little giggle slip while he hands karl the drink and heads back over to the stove in a few steps.

the loud sip karl took surely would've caught cheddar's attention too, sapnap thought to himself while the concoction in the pot was looking more golden by the second. 

once sapnap deemed the mac 'n cheese was a good texture and seemed edible enough, he turned off the stove. the red light slowly flickering out while he gathered utensils and tossed the wooden spoon in the sink. almost hitting karl in the process. 

karl took a sip every few seconds. making less sipping noises the more they drank. 

sapnap danced around the kitchen setting up for two, dumping the hot meal into ceramic bowls he made a while ago. they matched each other since it was apart of his art project he had one year.

he had set everything while karl and cheddar watched him, he had finally set himself on a barstool. nothing like mac 'n cheese with an energy drink at two am in the mornin'.

karl copied soon after, but not entirely. 

karl only stared at the bowl while holding their fork, which was obviously strange.

the clank of sapnap's fork stopped as he watched karl for a second. 

"you good?" sapnap asked, looking at karl. 

karl only nodded. they finally took their first bite, similar to how sapnap did. 

again, their face made no sign of enjoyment or disgust. so sapnap would just have to go off of karl's word. he felt like one of those chef's on kitchen nightmares but he was the one being judged this time. 

karl only nodded, so sapnap took that as a-okay. he let himself internally let out a sigh of relief before going back to enjoying his own food.

they ate in silence for a while, just the sound of the bowls and forks. 

"if mac 'n cheese has cheddar, then why can't we just eat that thing?" sapnap looked back up at karl, and they were pointing at cheddar who was circling around sapnaps chair in hopes for scraps. sapnap looked back at karl in horror. 

"that's just his name, i could never eat cheddar," sapnap cries, shaking his head. "we can't go eating our pets karl." he adds, taking another bite.

karl nods in understanding or at least sapnap thinks he does. 

"what are pets?" karl asks, and sapnap takes a sip of their monster before replying. 

"they're like- animals humans keep around in the house. and take care of 'cause we love 'em." 

"i only understood half of that," karl says blankly.

"for an alien with antennas, you seem to pick and choose what you understand." sapnap points out.

"shut up," karl pauses. "did i use that right?" 

"yeah sadly you did." sapnap chugs the rest of his energy drink in gloom.

* * *

after the sun had risen, sapnap learned that the best way to teach karl how to be human was through cartoons.

one issue though was karl insisted that they watch cartoon network as their only channel of human education. 

which sapnap didn't mind, but he just hoped karl realized that kids don't normally carry around ray guns. 

the fifth can of monster was set next to all the other ones on the table at the end of the couch they both were snuggled into.

karl learned what a blanket was too, and promptly claimed almost all the ones sapnap owned. sapnap doesn't understand how karl wasn't melting under all of them.

but maybe it's because karl was just fixated on the tv for the time being. 

the sunlit most of the room in a light orange haze, sapnap had turned off his own lights so only the sun touched the boxes and objects around his apartment.

the kitchen was pretty dark though, being the farthest from it all. cheddar made a space on the carpet for himself at the bottom of sapnap's feet. 

the whole room seemed a lot brighter, and that's why sapnap like to open his windows a lot. despite most of his family thinking he's a complete shut-in. his mother knew he liked the sun best though. 

sapnap was in a phase of dozing off and waking back up right now too. his stream was in a couple of hours so he was playing catch up for once. 

but what also came with the sunrise was the fact that karl was indeed, not human. and most likely not from this planet either.

sapnap had already exhausted all the scenarios though. about how karl could turn hostile- take over the planet. or even be kidnapped by the government. yeah, they were all pretty realistic thoughts in sapnap's head. 

and he didn't like to dwell on the fact that this all could just be some cruel dream, he didn't like that idea to much so it was pushed to the farthest corner of his mind while he watched some little kid kick ass in a cartoon. 

although these last few hours were unplanned, and sapnap would have to file for another roommate and make karl an actual citizen- sapnap doesn't mind the challenge.

infact he is kind of excited, all the possibilities weigh out any bad and sapnap is always ready to go out on a whim. 

those thoughts are for another day though, because right now he's gonna enjoy saturday cartoons with his new alien friend.

**Author's Note:**

> i have had this idea for wayy too long  
> but i gotta go finished other fics before i start writing this like cocaine 
> 
> anyway :)
> 
> have a good day/night


End file.
